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Poulydamas (1) is a middling character in the Iliad, not one of the great heroes but not simply an incidental figure who is called into existence only to be killed. He is a Trojan, the son of Panthoos--an elder found in book three sitting with Priam on the walls of Troy and watching the battle. He is the brother of Euphorbos, who strikes the second blow against Patroklos in book sixteen, and also the brother of Hyperenor, killed by Menelaos, as we learn at the beginning of book seventeen. He is primarily a counselor: several times he gives advice to Hektor, and at a crucial moment Hektor rejects his advice. These episodes of advice are important stages in the unfolding of the plot, and they are also important as revelations of Hektor's character. These carefully arranged passages display the power of variation within a formulaic method of composition. And finally, because Poulydamas, as Hektor's double, expresses what Hektor cannot say, these passages contribute to our understanding of the Homeric view of the self. (2)
Poulydamas is first mentioned in Book XI; he appears several times in each of Books XII, XIII, XIV, and XV; and once each in Books XVI and XVII; and three times in Book XVIII. But as soon as Achilles returns to battle, in Book XIX, Poulydamas seems to drop out of the story, until Book XXII, when he receives one last, and very important, reference. (3) He is clearly a figure of the second half of the story. I will examine these passages in order, since I feel that their arrangement is part of the meaning they present.
I. The Introduction of Poulydamas
In Book XI a new day has dawned. This is the day after the embassy in book nine, when Odysseus and Phoinix and Aias fail to persuade Achilles to return to the battle; Book X is the so-called Doloneia, in which Odysseus and Diomedes make a night raid on the Trojan camp. (4) In Book XI, the Achaians begin the new day of battle very impressively; the great arming scene of Agamemnon extends from XI.17 to XI.46, and then the Achaians move forward to fight. It is at this point that we first meet Poulydamas,
On the other side of the ditch at the break of the plain the Trojans gathered about tall Hektor and stately Poulydamas and Aineas, honoured by Trojans in their countryside as a god is, and the three sons of Antenor, Polybos, and brilliant Agenor, and Akamas, a young man still, in the likeness of the immortals. (Iliad XI. 56-60) (5)
Thus at his first introduction Poulydamas is among the leaders of the Trojans, just after Hektor and just before Aineas. Evidently he is a fighter of some consequence. It seems odd that a figure placed among such company here has not been mentioned previously in the story. In this episode, moreover, he does nothing--he is only a name. This reference is perhaps a preparation for the episodes, soon to come, in which he speaks and acts more extensively.
II. The First Counsel
The second episode in which Poulydamas figures occurs near the beginning of Book XII. At this point the Achaians and the Trojans are fighting in front of the ditch and the wall which the Achaians have constructed to protect the ships. The Achaians are losing ground, and the Trojans have to decide if they should try to cross the ditch, and if they do, if they should take along their horses and chariots. At this point Poulydamas speaks to Hektor (XII. 60-79). He advises against taking the horses over the ditch. He points out that it is hard for the horses to cross; there are stakes planted in it; there is no easy way to get down, and the ground is bad for fighting, since it is narrow. Furthermore, if the Achaians should make a counterattack, the Trojans could be driven against the ditch. Therefore, he says, the horses should be left behind, and the dismounted Trojans should follow Hektor in mass formation.
It is interesting that Poulydamas here gives good reasons at some length in his effort to persuade Hektor. Very often persuasion in the Iliad seems to be rather short on developed argument, relying either on the status of the speaker, on unspoken assumptions, or on inducements, such as rewards. (6) But here Poulydamas gives a good argument, and Hektor is persuaded (XII. 80-89). He dismounts, and the other Trojans follow his example. They form into five battalions, and Hektor and Poulydamas lead one group. In this episode Poulydamas plays the role of wise counselor, giving good reasons for his advice, which is pleasing to Hektor. And once again we see him as a leader in the battle.
III. The Second Counsel
Poulydamas acts as a counselor a second time in Book XII. Hektor, Poulydamas, and the men in their company have reached the ditch, and as they stand at its edge they are divided in doubt about how to proceed. At that moment a bird sign appears--an eagle carrying a gigantic snake (XII. 195-250). As they watch, the snake writhes backwards and strikes the eagle, which lets it drop and then flies away. Now Poulydamas interprets the bird sign and gives advice according to his interpretation,
And now Poulydamas stood beside bold Hektor and spoke to him: "Hektor, somehow in assembly you move ever against me though I speak excellently, since indeed there is no good reason for you, in your skill, to argue wrong, neither in the councils nor in the fighting, and ever to be upholding your own cause. Now once more I will speak out the way it seems best to me. (Iliad XII. 210-15)
This seems an odd way to begin a speech of persuasion. Evidently we are to understand that there has been some history of tension and conflict between Hektor and Poulydamas, a history we have not heard of before. In the previous episode, just a few lines earlier, there was no hint that Hektor was in the habit of disagreeing with the advice given by Poulydamas, and there he took the advice. But as we will see in a moment, Hektor does not like the advice Poulydamas gives in this episode, and he rejects it angrily. Can we say that Poulydamas is represented as anticipating Hektor's disagreement? Is there something about what Poulydamas is going to say here which might be particularly offensive to Hektor?
Poulydamas now gives his interpretation of the bird sign (XII. 216-29). The eagle stands for the Trojans, while the snake stands for the Achaians; and just as the snake managed to attack the eagle, which had to let it drop, so the Achaians will be able to attack the Trojans, who will have to retreat in disorder. He ends by saying "So an interpreter of the gods would answer, one who knew in his mind the truth of portents, and whom the people believed in" (XII. 228-29). He does not claim that he is himself an interpreter of the gods, but he does claim that his interpretation is the interpretation such an interpreter would give. (7)
This advice does not please Hektor. His reply is remarkable, and it is worth citing in full,
Looking darkly at him tall Hektor of the shining helm answered: "Poulydamas, these things that you argue please me no longer. But if in all seriousness this is your true argument, then it is the very gods who ruined the brain within you, you who are telling me to forget the counsels of thunderous Zeus, in which he himself nodded his head to me and assented. But you: you tell me to put my trust in birds, which spread wide their wings. I care nothing for these; I think nothing of them, nor whether they go by on our right against dawn and sunrise or go by to the left against the glooming mist and the darkness. No, let us put our trust in the counsel of great Zeus, he who is lord over all mortal men and all the immortals. One bird sign is best: to fight in defense of our country. Why are you so afraid of war and hostility? Even though all the rest of us were to be cut down around you among the Argive ships, you would run no danger of dying since your heart is not enduring in battle nor a fighter's. But if you shrink away from the murderous work, or turn back some other man from the fighting, beguiling him with your arguments, at once beaten down under my spear you will lose your own life." (Iliad XII. 230-50)
This passage may be summarized roughly as follows: "I don't like what you say; if you are serious, then the gods have ruined your brain; you forget the counsels of Zeus. You say we should trust bird-signs, but I care nothing for them; we should trust in Zeus. Why are you afraid? You...
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